
Travis Unified Teachers Association member John Scholz has taught at Golden West Middle school for 28 years. He started his career pursuing a degree in medicine but recognized his aptitude for teaching during a 2-week teaching internship and never looked back. John is inspired by his colleagues and enjoys their collaboration time. Teaching children of past students allows him to benefit from the relationships he works so hard to foster with families—it helps when you are one of the parents’ favorite teachers. His advice to new teachers: “Some days can be really bad, but you can’t just close your door and leave; you have to get through it, and you will!” His bucket list includes a visit to the Galapagos Islands to see where Darwin studied and a trip to the Panama Canal.